Bruddy BruddyClip (formerly ShuffleMate)

Bruddy’s BruddyClip (formerly called the ShuffleMate) is a bit of an odd beast when it comes to iPod shuffle accessories. It’s not really a case — it encloses the iPod shuffle in a clear plastic exoskeleton but leaves most of its surfaces exposed. And although it has a clip, it also provides more functionality than a simple belt clip. For example, in addition to the plastic belt clip on the back, the BruddyClip also provides four plastic slots, one on each edge, for attaching the included “bulldog” clip (the type of spring-loaded clip you often see on ID badges); once attached, you can then attach your shuffle to anything too thick for the built-in belt clip.

The BruddyClip also provides cable management functionality for the iPod’s own earbuds. You attach your earbud cable to the case via one of four small cable clips, wrap it around the case until you’ve got just the right length of cable left over, and then run the cable through another clip to secure it. The result is that your earbud cable is only as long as you want it to be.

The BruddyClip isn’t the most attractive accessory I’ve seen — in fact, when wrapped up in earbud cable, it’s fairly cluttered in its appearance. And because the BruddyClip’s cable clips won’t work with thicker headphone cables, and the plastic at the top of the BruddyClip prevents the use of headphones with miniplugs significantly larger than the one found on Apple’s earbuds, the BruddyClip is best suited for use with the iPod’s stock earbuds. Finally, I found that wrapping the earbud cable around the BruddyClip worked better when using the “bulldog” clip than when using the built-in belt clip. (The wrapped cable made it difficult to access the belt clip.) Still, the BuddyClip is an interesting concept, and it worked as advertised in terms of cable management.–Dan Frakes